History of the Miniskirt: How Fashion’s Most Daring Hemline Came To Be | StyleCaster 255 Shares 2 years ago From super-short python dresses that came down the runway at Gucci to the pastel quilted minis at Miui Miu, one thing’s for sure: Fall fashion is all about thinking short—and we mean very short. While today it’s easy to take for granted that hemlines rise and fall based on the whims of designers rather than political statement, that wasn’t always the case. In fact, the miniskirt had pretty controversial origins. MORE: A History of the Swimsuit, From Bathing Gown to String Bikini If anyone should be credited with pioneering the mini it would be British-designer Mary Quant, who told the New York Daily News this year: “A miniskirt was a way of rebelling.” The Quant definition of a mini: The bottom edge of the skirt must hit roughly halfway up the thigh, and fall no more than four inches below the butt. Here, a look back at how one of fall’s biggest trends came to be in the first place.

5400-4700 B.C: Think miniskirts were born during Britain’s Youthquake in the 1960s? Think again. Archaeologists have uncovered figurines in Europe dating from between 5400-4700 B.C. dressed in miniskirts. This isn’t the only very early example of a miniskirt, either. Ancient Egyptian frescos depict female acrobats wearing miniskirts. 1926: Cut forward a few hundred years, and hemlines began rising in earnest during the 1920s with the advent of the flapper, but it was the entertainer Josephine Baker who made waves with a miniskirt made of bananas during performances of the “Folies Bergère” in Paris. Josephine Baker.

Photo: Getty 1950s: While the hot fashions following WWII were all about the full skirt that hit below the knee, the miniskirt began to make appearances in science fiction films like “Flight to Mars” and “Forbidden Planet.” 1962: The earliest direct reference to the miniskirt came from Wyoming newspaper The Billings Gazette describing the miniskirt as a controversial item in production in Mexico City. In the piece, the miniskirt was described as stopping eight inches above the knee. 1964: If anyone should be credited with pioneering the miniskirt it is British designer Mary Quant. Quant opened what became the iconic boutique Bazaar in 1955 on King’s Road in London’s Chelsea neighborhood. Inspired by the fashions she saw on the streets, Quant raised the hemline of her skirts in 1964 to several inches above the knee, and the iconic miniskirt was born. She named the skirt after her favorite car, the Mini. Quant wasn’t the only pioneer of the miniskirt at the time.

French designer André Courrèges began experimenting with hemlines as well in the early 1960s, and he began to show space-age dresses that hit above the knee in late 1964. Because both designers had something to do with the miniskirt, a debate has raged on for decades as to who actually invented it, though Quant famously said, “It wasn’t me or Courrèges who invented the miniskirt anyway—it was the girls in the street who did it.” Regardless who who technically invented it, supermodel Twiggy became the unofficial poster child at the tim for the miniskirt look. Twiggy. Photo: Getty. 1965: The miniskirt continued to have a banner year in 1965. Model Jean Shrimpton caused a stir when she wore a miniskirt with no stockings, hat, or gloves to the Melbourne Cup Carnival in Australia. The mini also got a boost when Yves Saint Laurent debuted his famous and very short “Mondrian” dresses. Jean Shrimpton.

Photo: Getty 1966: Paco Rabanne launched plastic chain-mail miniskirt in 1966, followed by the throw-away minidress. The mini was officially a high fashion statement. 1967: Goldie Hawn’s “Laugh In” debuted on TV, inspiring girls around the U.S. to don miniskirts and minidresses copying her signature mod style. 1968: Fully cementing the trend, Jackie Kennedy chose a short white pleated Valentino dress when she married Aristotle Onassis. 1969: With political tensions high because of the Vietnam War, the fashion pendulum swung, becoming increasingly nostalgic, and hemlines fell back down to the ankle in a style called the “maxi.” Hemlines hadn’t been so long since 1914. 1974: The 1970s weren’t good to the miniskirt, but Debbie Harry, who began fronting Blondie in 1974, helped to revive the miniskirt, regularly wearing it on stage. The mini, favored by punk acts at the time, was reinvented in black leather and PVC. Debbie Harry. Photo: Getty.

1982: The rah-rah (or ra-ra) skirt began having a major moment in the 1980s, originating from cheerleading uniforms. The Oxford Dictionary noted this as the first successful miniskirt revival and the rah-rah skirt even appeared on the cover of Time magazine in 1982. 1984: Madonna wowed the crowd at the MTV Video Music Awards, rolling around the stage in a white tulle minidress resembling a wedding dress. Virginal it was not. 1990s: Julia Roberts set a fashion trend wearing a shorter than short skirt and thigh high boots in “Pretty Woman.” Also, throughout the decade, miniskirts were incorporated into the wardrobes of working women thanks to the influence of TV shows like “Melrose Place” and “Ally McBeal.” Photo Via Fox 2000s: Miniskirts got a boost in the aughts thanks to stars like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, who wore theirs with midriff-baring tops. 2009: In recognition of Quant’s impact pioneering the miniskirt, the Royal Mail in the UK released a stamp in homage to her signature design.

Photo: Imaxtree 2014: Proof that it is only a matter of time before what is old is new again, runways were awash in mini-skirts, particularly minis inspired by swinging 1960s. Gucci, Raf Simons at Dior, and Hedi Slimane for Saint Laurent all had mini fever. “My haute couture was all legs, legs, legs,” designer Giambattista Valli told the Wall Street Journal , describing his most recent haute couture collection. Miniskirt definition Skirt Factory Dress Factory Fashion Directory Definition List Fashion Industry News Clothing Industry Glossary The miniskirt is a skirt with a hemline well above the knees (generally 20cm or more above knee level). Its existence is generally credited to the fashion designer Mary Quant , who was inspired by the Mini Cooper automobile, although the French designer Andrï¿½ Courrï¿½ges is also often cited as its inventor, and there is disagreement on who invented it first.

Some credit the Miniskirt to Helen Rose who made some miniskirts for actress Anne Francis in the 1956 Sci Fi movie, Forbidden Planet Recently, Marit Allen, a Vogue "Young Ideas" editor at the time, has stated that " John Bates , in particular, has always been completely unappreciated for his contribution to the innovation and creativity he brought to the London design scene." He bared the midriff, used transparent vinyl and, Marit Allen asserts, was responsible for "the raising of the hemline. It was John Bates, rather than Mary Quant or Courrï¿½ges , who was responsible for the miniskirt." Bates' costumes and accessories for Diana Rigg in The Avengers define "Mod style." Mary Quant ran a popular clothes shop on Chelsea, London 's Kings Road called Bazaar, from which she sold her own designs. In the late 1950s she began experimenting with shorter skirts, which resulted in the miniskirt in 1965 one of the defining fashions of the decade.

Owing to Quant's position in the heart of fashionable " Swinging London ", the miniskirt was able to spread beyond a simple street fashion into a major international trend. The miniskirt was further popularised by Andrï¿½ CourrÃ¨ges, who developed it separately and incorporated it into his Mod look, for spring/summer 1965. His miniskirts were less body-hugging, worn with the white " Courr ges boots " that became a trademark. By introducing the miniskirt into the haute couture of the fashion industry, Courr ges gave it a greater degree of respectability than might otherwise have been expected of a street fashion. The miniskirt was followed up in the mid-1960s by the even shorter micro skirt, which covers not much more than the intimate parts with the underpants . It has often been derogatorily referred to as a belt . Subsequently, the fashion industry largely returned to longer skirts such as the midi and the maxi. However, miniskirts remain popular. The 1980s saw the miniskirt's introduction to the office. Many women began to incorporate the miniskirt into their business attire.

Today, it is common to see a woman wearing a miniskirt in the office. Around the turn of the 21st century, the micro has been reworked as an even less substantial "beltskirt", which is more an evocation of the idea of a skirt than something that covers anything substantial. It may perhaps also provide rhythm for the hipline. Due to its revealing nature, the "beltskirt" is rarely worn in public. Miniskirts are also seen worn over trousers or jeans , or with strap-on trouser "leggings" that provide coverage of each leg from above the knee. The 1960s Mini Skirt Fashion History - Mary Quant . 1960s Talent Talent was the prerequisite to success in the 1960s. For the first time ever in any fashion era, the young became the leaders of fashion. They led with new and radically innovative fashion styles, with little girl woman androgynous looks for women that swept away the sophisticated sweater girls of the early sixties. The picture of Twiggy in the header defines her as the epitome of a sixties baby doll woman.

Fifties Fashion Hangs on until 1966 In the 21st century it's easy to associate all 1960s fashion with short skirts, but the short skirt was not really worn by many until 1966 and not nationwide until 1967. Just as in the 1920s for half a decade clothes still showed signs of belonging to the late fifties. The fore runner of the mini dress the straight shift, which had developed from the 1957 sack dress , was still well below the knee. In the early sixties, pleated skirts set on a hip yoke basque were worn with short sleeved over blouses which were cut not unlike the shell tops of today. Straight skirts had front and back inverted pleats called kick pleats and were ideal for doing the twist dance craze as they allowed the knee to move freely. Straight sweater dresses in lambswool or the synthetic acrylic variety called Orlon were worn belted with waists nipped in became fashionable. Pencil skirts were still worn with sweaters or even back to front cardigans that had been pressed super flat.

Before the days of tumble driers many women lay their washed rung out knitwear in paper tissue and then brown paper. They put it to dry under a carpet for two days. When it was removed from the tissue, the footsteps that had pounded over the knit gave it a flat dry cleaned as new appearance. Laundering of delicates could still be a problem, but everything changed when mass produced synthetic garments arrived. ï¿½ï¿½ Mary Quant and the Mini Skirt By 1966 Mary Quant was producing short waist skimming mini dresses and skirts that were set 6 or 7 inches above the knee. It would not be right to suggest she invented the fashion mini skirt. In 1965 she took the idea from the 1964 designs by Courrï¿½ges and liking the shorter styles she made them even shorter for her boutique Bazaar. She is rightly credited with making popular a style that had not taken off when it made its earlier debut. Quant found London girls seeking newness only too willing to try her new daring short mini skirt.

The fashion trend took off because it was so different and to wear it well you had to be youthful to get away with an outfit that was so controversial, particularly among adults. The Quant style was soon known as the Chelsea Look. You are reading an original 'The 1960s Mini Skirt' fashion article by Pauline Weston Thomas at © Right - The length of a typical late sixties short mini skirt. The shapes Quant designed were simple, neat, clean cut and young. They were made from cotton gabardines and adventurous materials like PVC used in rain Macs. They almost always featured little white girly collars. The Mid-1960's Hairstyle Left - The five point hairstyle that says 1960s. Mary Quant also sported a sharply cut geometric hairstyle. One of the most famous and favoured cuts of the era was the 5 point cut by Vidal Sassoon. The hairstyles and the short mine skirts and min dresses made the mid and late sixties fashion look. Right - Provincial more bouffant variations of the asymmetric cut fringe circa 1968.

The Unsung Mini Skirt Inventor - John Bates John Bates was one of the most influential British designers of the 1960s. Ernestine Carter the fashion historian thought him the unsung inventor of the mini skirt. His mini dresses were the shortest, had the barest midriffs and the models wore the least undergarments - he preferred a bra-less silhouette. In 1959 he had set up the Jean Varon label and later a label under his own name. His influence in the sixties was such that he dressed Diana Rigg in The Avengers series. Other celebrities of the day such as Twiggy, Sandie Shaw, Jean Shrimpton and Dusty Springfield all wore his fashion designs. But so did the masses as he also designed for important key department stores in the UK. John Bates has never been given enough credit for his role in the rise of the mini skirt. The facts are that John Bates was making shorter skirts long before others. But Mary Quant was the facilitator of this novel idea who was really noticed. She got the mini skirt out among trendy young girls about town and it soon became copied and popular everywhere.

Quant was copied everywhere and another famous name of the sixties was Barbara Hulanicki of Biba. Biba of course was a sixties hit with girls who loved fashionable and funky looks at a value price. That Was The Week That Was ...(v4r) The London TV Saturday night programme 'That Was The Week That Was', watched by half the UK nation had some time earlier shown a model wearing a dress with a belt that enabled the model to lift the dress up showing the possible various shorter lengths that designers were forecasting hemlines would rise to in the next six months. The audience laughed and gasped and viewers across Britain tittered, but within less than a year the shorter length was firmly established with under twenties and soon after their mothers too began wearing a short mini skirt. Typical of the era the opening lines of the show were 'that was the week that was, it's over let it go...' It was typical of the 1960's attitude of let's get on with the future, making it a very fast moving decade in fashion, lifestyles, innovations and morals. The fashion mini skirt became one of the icons that symbolized this era.

You are reading an original 'The 1960s Mini Skirt' fashion article by Pauline Weston Thomas at © Death of Stockings What made the mini really acceptable was the introduction of pantyhose known mostly today as tights. It was hard to wear a mini dress with stockings and feel confident, but with tights there was protection from the elements and no unsightly glimpse of stocking tops. Stockings died in the mid 1960s and were only revived as leg wear in the 1990s or else kept for the bedroom. Pantyhose When tights were first introduced in the 1960s it liberated women from girdles , roll-ons and suspender belts . It's difficult to know which came first the skirt or the tights, but the introduction of seamless stockings had started the tights revolution. What is certain it is unlikely the one could have existed without the other as no groomed young lady ever went out bare legged then. A pair of Wolsey tights cost about ï¿½1 in 1965 and with careful daily washing they could be made to last a month. Marks and Spencer was soon churning out lower cost versions.

Obviously planned obsolescence has been introduced since then for all brands, as most of us now find it difficult to make them last for more than a day or two's wear. Tights in the late 60s were often patterned with arrangements of diamonds or other motifs and a favourite colour of the era was a golden brown called American Tan. Fishnet tights were also popular briefly. Lurex glitter tights in gold or silver were a hit for the Christmas period. ï¿½ 1960s Footwear Lower kitten heels were a dainty alternative to stilettos Pointed toes gave way to chisel shaped toes in 1961 and to an almond toe in 1963. Flat boots also became popular with very short dresses in 1965 and eventually they rose up the leg and reached the knee. A cult for Dr. Scholl clog sandals worn in offices and outdoors was all the rage in the mid to late sixties in the same way that Birkenstocks were popular in the 1990s. Pinafores and Knits Knitted twin sets were still worn, but often the items were worn as separates.

Square, V or round neck pinafore dresses in plain or tartan wool fabrics were teamed with polo neck jumpers or tie neck blouses. Other combinations were burgundy plum pinafores worn with white or mustard blouses. A sleeved variation of the button through version of the pinafore was called a coat dress and it was worn with or without a skinny rib fitting sweater. It was often worn with a half belt at the back waist. All clothes were narrow shouldered and cut in at the armholes to properly reveal the arm and its shoulder joint. Even short sleeve versions were set well into the armscye. Left - Dresses of 1967 with cutaway armholes Baby doll dresses of 1966 were full and flared into tent shapes mostly with cutaway armholes or/and a halter neck. They were made of transparent tulles, lace or chiffons plain or tree bark mounted over a matching lining or could be made of crinkled cotton crepe fabrics. Lace of all types from Broderie Anglaise to guipure to crochet effects over coloured linings or flesh toned linings were often seen.

Black polo neck sweaters made popular by the Beatles cover album were often worn under check pinafore dresses. The dresses were usually solid colours of red or purple wool material. Checks of black and white such as dog or hound's-tooth or Prince of Wales check. Black and white was a sixties combination and was used in op art dresses and block pieced dresses worked in Mondrian style. Black patent accessories complimented all these combinations. One of the easiest ways to get the sixties look was to wear short little coloured gloves with a hole cut out to reveal the back of the hand. The gloves were similar in appearance to golf gloves of today. With the gloves coloured plastic beaded raffia knit bags and plastic coloured bangles and chandelier earrings made of large sequin discs were all high fashion accessories that lasted about 5 years. All of these trend setting outfits and accessories could easily be obtained from Wallis, Richards, Etams, Biba or Chelsea Girl shops. Marks and Spencer did their bit and brought a shorter young junior range to teen girls in an effort to cut the cost. The range did not have the added on adult purchase tax that clothes had in pre VAT days.

You are reading an original 'The 1960s Mini Skirt' fashion article by Pauline Weston Thomas at © O utdoor Clothes Outdoor looks were achieved by using fabrics like wool, Terylene or cotton gabardine, corduroy, leather, suede or mock suede fabrics made up as car coats. Also cheaper alternatives such as padded nylon diamond quilted anoraks or cotton anoraks with toggles and Austrian peasant embroidered braids were quite common. T rousers ...(v4r) The mini dominated fashion and women sometimes needed a practical alternative smarter than jeans that could be worn day or evening. Quite formal trousers worn with a tunic, shirt, skinny rib or matching suit jacket were acceptable in certain work situations and liked as alternative evening wear when made from slinkier materials. Trousers were made from Courtelle jersey, cotton velvet, silky or bulked textured Crimplenes, lace with satin, and Pucci style printed Tricel. Hipster versions were popular and very flared versions developed by the late sixties, with every style ultimately translating into denim jeans.

Its worth noting that the hipsters of the 60s were not quite as low cut along the pelvic line as low rise jeans of 2005. So Many Influences on 1960's Styles Many things influenced fashion in the 1960s. Social mobility, daring fashion photography, easier travel abroad, the Vietnam war, new music of the Beatles and their much copied hairstyles, retro military and ethnic clothes, musicals, pop art and film all played a part. Right - Jackie Kennedy in the early 1960s wearing her trademark pill box hat and three quarter sleeves. Courrï¿½ges clean cut sharp 1960's design. I have already looked at Mary Quant and the role of pantyhose, but other major 60's influences included the trend setting globally photographed Jackie Kennedy. In addition Emilio Pucci's exotic psychedelic beautiful fabric prints, Courrï¿½ges's space age sculptured designs were as important as the fresh approach to fashion as that of Yves St. Laurent. The then youthful designer Yves St.Laurent made a clean forward looking fashion design image with his Mondrian inspired dress. Yves St.

Laurent's much copied Mondrian inspired shift dress. See and buy great 1960s photographs at Rock Around the Clock By the 1960s the Twist, the Shake and the Locomotion ousted the paired dancing couples of earlier generations. Only for the last few dances of the evening was the Smooch allowed for couples to romantically hold each other as they made their play to walk a partner home. Some stalwarts continued to rock and jive and to wear Teddy Boy gear. New Synthetic Yarns in the 1960s Many of the fashions of the 1960s existed because of the fabrics. They introduced new fabric properties and when synthetics were mixed with natural fibres there was improved performance in wear. Some had been invented years earlier in the 1930s and 1940s, but it was only in the 60s that huge production plants for synthetic fibres sprang up globally. In the UK in the 1960s Marks and Spencer was instrumental in bringing Elastomerics from America to their range of bras, corsetry and bathing wear. Other manufacturers and fashion retailers soon followed.

Meanwhile as man made fibres gained a hold, the Yorkshire woollen industry began to contract at an alarming rate. Job losses were inevitable and yet so often the newer man made yarn companies settled in areas where there was already a body of knowledge and a heritage of spinning, knitting or weaving. Du Pont and ICI were the giants of synthetic manufacture producing a wide range of fabrics under trade names relating to Polyamide , Polyesters, Polyurethanes, Polyolefins, and Polyacrylonitriles the polyvinyl derivative. All the fibre bases could be used as bulked or fine yarns dependant on fibre extrusion method and final finishing. The name often related to the country or plant where the fibre was produced for example Enkalon was Irish made nylon whereas Crylor, an acrylic yarn was made in France. Polyamide is nylon. It came under trade names such as Nylon 6, Celon, Enkalon, Perlon, Bri-Nylon, Cantrece and others. Polyester was known variously as Terylene, Dacron, Terlenka, Trevira, Kodel, Diolen, Tergal and Lavsan.

Polyurethane is the generic name of the elastomeric family of stretch fibres like Spandex, Lycra and Spanzelle. All these man made synthetic fibres began to be used in bras, underwear, swimwear and sportswear. Lycra eventually found its way into fabric mixes to aid crease recovery, wearing ease, fit and stretch. Polyvinyl derivatives produce polyacrylonitriles and this includes Orlon, Acrylic, Crylor, Courtelle and Creslan. Modified acrylics such as Dynel and Teklan were first used to make fake furs and fake hair for wigs in the sixties. You are reading an original 'The 1960s Mini Skirt' fashion article by Pauline Weston Thomas at © Read more about 1950s girdles, petticoats, bras and stockings in the 1950s section. Retro 1960s, 1970s, 1980s talk format and music at tonyjamesradio.com Footnote Biba History In 1964 Barbara Hulanicki founded Biba with her husband.

The team developed a small fashion shop in Abingdon Road, Kensington. The original Biba concept was the retail forerunner of low cost value fast fashion today and the type of pieces found in Primark or George at Asda. Biba sold low priced versions of high fashion items particularly the Quant mini skirt. Biba and the Biba style of make up application was also a huge sixties look. The Biba Art Deco store of the 70s was the place to be seen hanging out. After expanding too fast, too soon, there were financial problems at Biba and Dorothy Perkins took a majority stake in the business in 1969. After some corporate machinations Barbara Hulanicki left Biba and the trademark name in 1975. Later the Biba business was sold on again. Meanwhile in the following forty years Barbara Hulanicki has had a successful career in both interiors and fashion and continues to design from barbarahulanickidesign.com As for Biba - in the late C20th decades, other licensees sold products under the Biba name.

The label has a chequered past and after a much heralded fashion revival again in 2006, the trademark fell at the post again and the owner went into administration in the 2008 recession. In 2008 the UK department store House of Fraser acquired the Biba trademark name. In October 2010 after a very successful launch and sell out of some Biba pieces, House of Fraser declared Biba their top selling fashion line. You are reading an original 'The 1960s Mini Skirt' fashion article by Pauline Weston Thomas at © Read more about 1950s girdles, petticoats, bras and stockings in the 1950s section. See and buy great 1960s photographs at If you like this page then please share it with your friends For related fashion eras of the mid twentieth century click below:- --Link-- Fashion Revolution: A History of the Miniskirt Fashion Revolution A History of the Miniskirt The 1960s was a politically charged decade of revolution and change.

Apollo 11 became the first capsule to land on the moon, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law, Vietnam was raging, Beatlemania was sweeping the world, birth control pills hit the market, and a new cult of youth, known as “Youthquake,” had radically taken over many areas of life. In the midst of these dramatic political and cultural changes emerged one of the most enduring and controversial icons of the era: the miniskirt (or mini skirt). Existing, surprisingly, since ancient times, this small and sexy piece of fabric has embodied some of the most fascinating paradoxes of our times as it suggests both empowerment and vulnerability, independence and a desire to please, an attempt to cover and to reveal, maturity and playfulness, and liberation and exploitation. Simultaneously condemned and loved, the miniskirt exploded into the political landscape and had women (and men) suddenly paying attention to what had been hidden years before—a woman’s legs. In the Beginning Was . . . the Miniskirt High in the mountains in some of Europe’s oldest villages, archaeologists have recently unearthed ancient figurines dating between 5400-4700 B.C.

What is remarkable about the figurines is not only their age, but also that the female figurines appear to be beautifully dressed in miniskirts not unlike the fashionable miniskirts of the 1960s, prompting some scholars to speculate that miniskirts were common in the earliest of civilizations (Derbyshire 2007). Interestingly, these figurines are not the only evidence of “ancient miniskirts. For example, an ancient Egyptian fresco shows a female acrobatic dancer wearing a “mini skirt” seemingly made out of cotton that shows off both her hips and her legs (Gandolfi 1989). Early Twentieth-Century Skirts and Sowing the Seeds of Change While the miniskirt may have existed as long as civilization has, it is probably only recently that it has evoked powerful political and cultural implications. In the mid 1800s, women in Europe and America were generally believed to be the weaker and more vulnerable sex. Politics, business, and physical activity could be dangerous for women, and tight corsets with long, restrictive skirts generally reflected these beliefs (Weaver 2003).

Like the miniskirt, the 1920s flapper conveyed an impression of a “new“ woman After WWI, however, advances in women’s emancipation and post-war escapism led to the “flapper” style, an androgynous style with hemlines up to a woman’s knee. After dropping to a more sober calf length during the early 1930s, hemlines rose to just below the knee during WWII, partly due to mandatory fabric rationing during the war (Lehnert 2000). After the end of wartime restrictions on cloth, women were ready for elegance and femininity, and the fashion industry promoted the “New Look” epitomized by Christian Dior. The New Look was mature and sophisticated, with an exaggerated hourglass figure and long, lavish hemlines (Steele 1997).

While the New Look reflected the “best years of our life” consumerism that followed WWII, the “teddy boys” and beatniks of the Beat generation were already sowing the seeds of discontent in 1950s materialism—a discontent that would find its full voice in the 1960s and dramatically change hemlines forever (Reilly 2003). The 1960s and the Politics of the Miniskirt Teenagers Create Their Own Political (and Fashion) Space Before the 1960s, young women had been expected to dress in the style of their mothers, which was usually loosely based on Parisian couture. For example, as late as 1962, a Sears catalog portrayed mothers and daughters as “patchwork pals” who were overjoyed that they are wearing identical dresses. Looking back on the late 1950s, the English designer Sally Tuffin remarked, “There weren’t any clothes for young people at all. One just looked like their mother” (Steele 1997).

However, by the 1960s, youth protests and demands for individual expression revealed that young adults were gaining a self-conscious awareness of themselves as a distinct and unified group that was able to respond to political events in ways that were different from their parents (Cawthorne 1999). Youngsters felt they no longer needed to follow the rules of bourgeois morality and manners, which they saw as hypocritical and based on double standards. As this young political entity gained a voice, they created a space for a new and distinctive fashion that embodied their own political views—not their parents’. The Miniskirt as an Expression and Tool of 1960s Feminism Growing awareness of feminism also paved the way for a different fashion for women. For example, in 1963, American Betty Friedman published The Feminine Mystique which deconstructed the myth of the happy housewife and expressed the desire of women to explore other roles. In addition, the 1960s saw a dramatic increase in women attending universities and entering the workforce, especially with the advent of the “temp agency” which allowed greater flexibility in when and where a woman wanted to work.

This decade also saw laws passed that helped protect and empower both married and divorced women (Diamond and Diamond 2006). Perhaps most important was the advent of the birth control pill, which removed fears of pregnancy and helped usher in the sexual revolution (Cawthorne 1999). The image of a woman was beginning to dramatically shift from being a wife and mother to a young, single, carefree girl proud of her sexuality and confident with her power. The miniskirt would express—and serve as a tool for—this growing woman’s movement. A New Class of Young Consumerism The young generation was indeed growing up rebellious and articulate—and with more money than they’ve ever had before. Young people suddenly became a powerful class of consumers who demanded a fashion that matched the spirit of youth. Consequently, the whole structure of the fashion system was challenged from the youth in the streets as the prestige of “couture” came under attack or, worse, seemed irrelevant (Cawthorne 1999). Upstart designers and boutiques began to cater to a new youth market that could now buy what they wanted—and to older women who began to scramble to look like their daughters.

“The Mother of the Miniskirt” : Mary Quant Mary Quant helped launch the mini skirt revolution in the 1960s When a young upstart British designer named Mary Quant opened her boutique Bazaar in 1955 on King’s Road (a mod and rocker hangout), she was poised to spearhead a fashion revolution. Without any real training in fashion, but with a finger on the pulse of everyday fashion of the street, she represented a distinctive breakaway in fashion. She began to sell clothes that reflected the ideas of the day’s youth and that had nothing to do with established Paris fashion houses (Lehnert 2000). When she raised the hemline of her skirts in 1965 to several inches above the knee, the iconic miniskirt was born. Named after her favorite car, the Mini, the miniskirt was an instant success and epitomized the spirit of London in the mid-60s: free, energetic, youthful, revolutionary, and unconventional (Diamond and Diamond 2006). “The Lord of the Miniskirt” : André Courrèges Quant probably deserves primary but not exclusive credit for the miniskirt.

One French designer also caught the spirit of the era and did for France what Quant did for England (and America)—André Courrèges. Though he began to experiment with hemlines as early as 1961, Courrèges showcased his futuristic, space-age minimalistic dresses which scandalously fell above the knee in late 1964. Like Quant, Courrèges shocked the fashion world. Unlike Quant, he tended to design his skirts with more sophistication and maturity, which, in turn, helped make the miniskirt acceptable to French haute couture (Cawthorne 1999). While Courrèges would later claim that he invented the miniskirt, Quant dismissed his claim, saying “It wasn’t me or Courrèges who invented the miniskirt anyway—it was the girls in the street who did it.” Though the debates between Quant and Courrèges can be amusing and many scholars tend to “skirt” the issue, both Quant and Courrèges appropriated the trends of earlier fashion houses and both took advantage of the greater social changes that were occurring around them.

Regardless of who really “invented” the miniskirt, both Quant and Courrèges deserve credit for revolutionizing and enriching the fashion world with their daring hemlines (Diamond and Diamond 2006). The Mini Goes International Quant’s influential position in the heart of “Swinging London,” Courrèges’ influential position in the more sophisticated Parisian fashion world, and the mini’s easily washable fabric that busy teenage girls were apt to buy helped the miniskirt become a major international trend. The miniskirt’s international acceptance was also boosted when Jean Shrimpton, a popular model, unwittingly caused an international stir in late 1965 when she wore a miniskirt with no stockings, hat, or gloves at the Melbourne Cup Carnival in Australia (Steele 1997). The classic photo of that day showed a dramatic contrast: behind the young, carefree, and beautiful Shrimpton was a group of disapproving middle-aged women dressed in their very proper twin sets and pearls. Shrimpton’s apparent disregard for the bland status quo made a trend-setting fashion statement around the world (in non-communistic and non-Muslim countries, at least).

Accessorizing the Miniskirt It wasn’t just moral outrage that followed the miniskirt, but also fashionable accessories. Accessories included zip-up knee high boots made of stretch vinyl (“kinky” or Courrèges’ “go-go” boots). Tights and pantyhose replaced awkward nylon stockings and became fashion statements in their own right. Actually, tights and pantyhose are what really made the miniskirt possible because they liberated the woman from garter belts and from trying to keep the lines on old-fashioned stockings straight (Olsen 1999). By the late 1960s, miniskirts were being made of see-through fabrics and other loose crotchet materials—which, in turn, made underwear an important new accessory in fashion as well. The “Lolita Look” Twiggy is an iconic “dolly bird“ and the face of the “Swinging 1960s“ Ironically, the full sexuality of the miniskirt during the 1960s also played on a “school-girl” image, and London became recognized as catering almost exclusively to young girls between the ages of 15 and 20.

The models on all the popular catwalks and fashion magazines were typically skinny and androgynous, with an almost prepubescent figure. Even Mary Quant’s husband and partner, Alexander Plunket-Greene, told Rolling Stone in 1987 that “at the time, there was a slightly sort of pedophile thing about it” (Cawthorne 1999). Indeed, the “Lolita look” was everywhere, and the fashionable woman of the 1950s, “all high-heeled and rock-hard tits,” was replaced by a London girl with a childish shape and a “great deal of long legs” (Cawthorne 1999). The most famous model of the era was seventeen-year-old Twiggy (Leslie Hornby), who had a short boyish hairstyle, pale lips, and skinny figure (she was 5′ 7″ and weighed 99 pounds). Even though the miniskirt initially was an expression of individuality, women and girls alike copied Twiggy’s Vidal Sassoon geometric bob and her heavily mascaraed eyelashes in an attempt to achieve her “doe-eyed” little girl look.

When young girls mimicked Twiggy’s fashionably gawky “broken limb” look, they were said to resemble little shop dolls or mannequins (White and Griffiths 2000). Not surprising, dieting fads and eating disorders skyrocketed during this decade (Lehnert 2000). Decline of the Mini in the Late 1960s The miniskirt of the “swinging 60s” lasted until the end of the decade. Throughout, fashion designers created some new and extreme variations in order to keep the excitement alive. For example, Paco Rabanne launched his plastic chain-mail miniskirt in 1966 and then the throw-away minidress. Despite this creativity, the mini eventually fell out of fashion when disillusionment about Vietnam became more widespread and the future looked less positive. With increasingly political despondency, fashion became a little more nostalgic and hemlines fell back down to the ankle in 1969 in a style called the “maxi,” which was the longest hemline since 1914 (Cawthorne 1999).

In addition, while the miniskirt initially was seen as liberating women, the development of terms such as “dolly birds” tended to objectify women, and feminists realized that the miniskirt had great potential to be more exploitive than liberating (Reilly 2003). With the feminist movement in full swing by the early 1970s, minis (whose hemlines had nowhere to go but down, anyway) fell into disfavor. The Late 1970s Punk Revival of the Mini While the miniskirt fell out of fashion in the early 1970s, the punk movement at the end of the decade helped revive the miniskirt, thanks in part to female rock stars such as Debbie Harry (Blondie) who were fond of wearing miniskirts on stage. The punks were motivated by anti-fashion and tried to avoid mainstream trends, which were considered bourgeois, bland, and over-indulgent. Influenced by punk designers such as Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren, whose shop SEX sold the fashion, the mini was reincarnated in black leather and PVC.

The mini was also now often worn with ripped fishnet tights and took on a slightly “trashy” overtone that reflected the “whatever” attitude (Cawthorne 1999). In an ironic twist of fashion, once the punk look was picked up by designers, the punk movement’s anti-establishment edge became mainstream itself. 1980s and 1990s: The Corporate Miniskirt The miniskirt was part of the power suit trend in the 1980s and early 1990s The 1980s and early 1990s heralded a return to a more womanly figure in contrast to the adolescent androgyny of the 1960s. Rather than disappearing, however, the miniskirt was incorporated into the new, big-shouldered, “power” business suit for women, either in traditional pinstripes or jewel-colored wools (Cawthorne 1999). Popular characters in TV sitcoms such as Carrie in Sex in the City and Heather Locklear in Melrose Place helped the miniskirt appear sexy—and smart (Diamond and Diamond 2006).

Miniskirts were no longer considered appropriate only for teenagers, but they also became a power statement for sophisticated, long-legged, thirty-something career women who were in total control of their single life. Mini Skirts around the World For the most part, the miniskirt has been accepted in the Western world; however, not all countries and cultures embraced the short skirt. Inmany African countries, the miniskirt was seen not only as a corrupting influence of the West but alsoof the modern world. For example, in Tanzania in 1968, at least one barmaid was stoned by a mob that supposedly disapproved of the shortness and tight fit of her miniskirt (Ross 2008), and politicians argued that the spread of AIDS would be halted if women would stop wearing miniskirts (“It’s in Our Hands”). And just this year, a strict Muslim father hired hitmen to kill his 21-year-old daughter because she refused to stop wearing miniskirts. After he paid the gangsters the equivalent of about $3,000, they kidnapped and shot her in the head on the outskirts of St. Petersburg, Russia (“Daughter Killed”).

Twenty-first Century Miniskirts While the miniskirt has been met with disapproval and even violence, the tiny skirt shows no signs of disappearing. On the contrary, the miniskirt is still heavily featured on Western catwalks and in fashion magazines—and it is often shorter than ever. The phone company Samsung even introduced a new cell phone in 2008 called the “Miniskirt Season 2” which, while looking nothing like a miniskirt, is targeted toward women who like to “Talk, Play, Love” (Evans 2008). The miniskirt—variously known as the “micro-mini,” “pelmet,” or “bondage” skirt—continues to occupy a fascinating and paradoxical space in the fashion world as it teasingly attempts to cover and reveal at the same time. In all of its contradictions and reinventions, the miniskirt still provokes, challenges, and demands attention from both men and women alike. -- Posted May 25, 2009 Lehnert, Gertrude. 2000. A History of Fashion in the 20th Century. Cologne, Germany: Konemann Verlagsgesellschaft mbH.

Olsen, James Stuart. 1999. Historical Dictionary of the 1960s. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood Press Group. Reilly, Edward J. 2003. The 1960s. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood Press Group. Ross, Robert. 2008. Clothing: A Global History. Boston, MA: Polity. Steele, Valerie. 1997. Fifty Years of Fashion: New Look to Now. New Haven, CT: Yale University. Weaver, Janice. 2003. From Head to Toe: Bound Feet, Bathing Suits, and Other Bizarre and Beautiful Things. Toronto, Canada: Tundra Books. White, Nicola and Ian Griffiths. 2000. The Fashion Business. Oxford, UK: Berg Publishers.

1960s Fashion: Mini-Skirts, Twiggy And Mods | The Huffington Post 1960s Fashion: Mini-Skirts, Twiggy And Mods 17/10/2013 12:51 | Updated 22 May 2015 MyDaily Staff MyDaily UK Read our full guide to 60s fashion, beauty and weddings here. 1960s style is remembered as the period that broke with fashion traditions. Designer Mary Quant is credited with the creation of the leg-baring mini-skirt, coloured tights and hot pants, which were key aspects of the decade's style. In London in the early 1960s the preppy, art and music-inspired Mod movement (in opposition to the leather-wearing rockers), took hold. The pastel hues of the 50s were replaced by bright colours, bold geometric shapes, boxy jackets and patent shoes, with mohair suits for the boys. Model and trend-setter Twiggy became the poster girl for 1960s style, especially the Mod movement, with her pixie hair and almost-cartoonish eye makeup.

Fashion was also influenced by those such as U.S. First Lady Jackie Kennedy, whose Oleg Cassini coats, polished suits and pillbox hats made her a timeless style icon; Grace Kelly, whose easy elegance spawned countless imitators; and English actress Jane Birkin, who epitomised the more laidback Swinging 60s look. The period was also known for its futuristic bent and space-age silhouettes (PVC dresses and go-go boots) - thanks to designers like Pierre Cardin, André Courrèges and Paco Rabanne - and for its hippie style, embodied in unisex bell-bottoms, flowing caftans, printed paisleys, tie-dyed tops, headbands and psychedelic patterned, flower-power fashion. Designer credited with popularising the mini-skirt made a Dame in New Year's Honours list | Wales - ITV News 31 December 2014 at 9:06am Designer credited with popularising the mini-skirt made a Dame in New Year's Honours list Fashioner designer Mary Quant has been made a Dame.

Photo: Ian West/PA Wire Fashion designer Mary Quant, who is credited with popularising the mini skirt, has been made a Dame in the New Year's Honours list. The 80 year old, whose parents are Welsh, was given the honour for services to British fashion. She was one of the most influential figures in the 1960s fashion scene, after starting to make her own clothes in 1955, experimenting with shorter hemlines in the late 1950s. Quant received an OBE in 1966. Credit: PA Archive I am absolutely delighted to have been awarded this terrific honour. It is extremely gratifying that my work in the fashion industry has been recognised and acknowledged in such a significant way. – Dame Mary Quant Quant with a group of models showcasing her designs in 1967.

Credit: PA Archive Miniskirts years 60s 70s ï¿½ 1 ï¿½ Girls sixties + seventies images gallery minidress pictures minijupe minigonne minirï¿½cke UK 1967 - Chelsea ► FOTO ï¿½ VIDEO UK 1967 - SHAKE ► VIDEO ï¿½ VIDEO ï¿½ VIDEO La minigonna e' una gonna con il bordo ben sopra il ginocchio ( generalmente 20cm o piu'... ) ed e' stata il simbolo piu' significativo della "Swinging London" degli anni 60 . L'invenzione della minigonna e' generalmente accreditata alla disegnatrice di moda Mary Quant , che fu ispirata dall'automobile Mini Cooper , ed allo stilista Francese Andrï¿½ Courrï¿½ges , anch'esso spesso citato come suo inventore . Ancora esistono discussioni su chi sia stato il primo .

Molti accreditano anche Helen Rose , che ideo' alcune minigonne per l'attrice Anne Francis nel film cult di Fantascienza " Il Pianeta Proibito " , del 1956 ; anche se esempi di mini vestiti erano gia' apparsi in film di fantascienza precedenti, come l'abito di Dale Arden in " Flash Gordon " del 1940. AU 1967 - Ragazze di Melbourne The miniskirt is a skirt with a hemline well above the knees ( generally 20 cm , or more , above knee level ). The mini was the defining fashion symbol of "Swinging London" in the 1960s. The miniskirt's existence in the 1960s is generally credited to the fashion designer Mary Quant , who was inspired by the Mini Cooper automobile, although the French designer Andrï¿½ Courrï¿½ges is also often cited as its inventor (the French referred to it as la mini-jupe), and there is disagreement as to who invented it first.

Some give the credit to Helen Rose who made some miniskirts for actress Anne Francis in the 1956 science fiction movie " Forbidden Planet " , but examples of midresses appeared in previous sci-fi movies , like the minidress of Dale Arden in 1940s movie " Flash Gordon " . Recently, Marit Allen, a Vogue " Young Ideas " editor at the time, has stated that "John Bates, in particular, has always been completely unappreciated for his contribution to the innovation and creativity he brought to the London design scene." He bared the midriff, used transparent vinyl and, Marit Allen asserts, was responsible for "the raising of the hemline. It was John Bates, rather than Mary Quant or Courrï¿½ges, who was responsible for the miniskirt." Bates' costumes and accessories for Diana Rigg , as Emma Peel in the ABC TV series, The Avengers, from 1965-7, helped to define " Mod style " .

As The Avengers' filmed episodes were made several months before screening, Avengers producer Brian Clemens confirmed in interviews that the miniskirt designed by Bates had to be used as a "gamble", since they did not know if it would catch on in public or be seen as a fashion failure by the time the episodes aired . However, Emma Peel's fashions were accepted by the public and even spawned a line of replicas of her clothes for public sale. Another, more "immediate" proponent of the miniskirt on television was Cathy McGowan, who introduced the weekly rock music show, Ready Steady Go! (1964-66). USA 1968 - Sharon Tate ► FOTO ï¿½ VIDEO

Question: Who is credited with the design of the 'Mini skirt'?
Answer: MARY QUANT